Seasons - The Four Seasons (Chapter 1)
Bailey's eyes drifted away from Mr. Loran as her history teacher continued droning on and on about how abilities ceased to exist after humans began to abuse their powers. She closed her hazel eyes, mind wandering to the rooftop garden, where she spent most of her time at when school wasn't in session. The most recent addition to her little safe haven was a bunch of forget-me-nots. The little blue flowers she had gotten from her mother were fresh in her mind, she could almost smell their light fragrance. "Ms. Matsumoto?" Bailey snapped out of her daze, "Can you please repeat the question, sir?" Mr. Loran sighed, obviously annoyed at her divided attention, "Please answer the question, how did the Elders draw the remaining powers into instruments?" Bailey answered without hesitation, "By using the power of one of the Elders, they drew all the remaining pieces into an instrument, thus creating the first Keiki." She watched in silent amusement as Mr. Loran's mouth opened, then closed, the corner of his left eye twitching. He had obviously underestimated her abilities to listen while daydreaming and the fact that she had practiced this material already last year after she finished all her work from the current year. The ringing of the school bell signaled the end of this torture they had to endure and soon enough, all the other 18-year-olds streamed out of the classroom into the crowded halls. She sat for a moment, eyes closed to enjoy the silence of the classroom. Suddenly, she felt a sudden unease. The kind of dread that fills you up and consumes you with fear. At that moment, all hell broke loose. The window of her classroom burst open and smoke filled the small space. Her eyes snapped open, mind whirling to comprehend this new situation. She could hear a faint thud as something collided with her classroom floor. Bailey's eyes darted towards the classroom door in alarm, mind already whirling to think of an escape route. "Don't bother, Miss Autumn," a smooth velvety voice called out through the heavy smoke, "we'll catch you before you take five steps, wanna bet?" The voice was soft, feminine, but it echoed around like a powerful force, threatening to blow Bailey off her feet. Even though she may not be the best listener, Bailey has the uncanny ability to evade panic and think clearly, even in a disaster. Perhaps that was why she didn't answer. Instead, she stared through the smoke, attempting to see whoever had threatened to catch her. All she could make out in the smoke was a figure. She almost gasped in shock when she noticed something rather odd about the figure. It had a bulky figure as if it had... wings on it's back. ... Charlie hummed as he completed the process of putting mixed cookie batter into the oven to bake. He stood up from his crouched position and winced, muscle aching from staying in the same position for too long. He was the only one in the bakery aside from various cakes, cookies, and loaves of bread in its separate cases, ready to be shipped off. He looked briefly in the mirror at his flour-dusted baby pink hair and grinned, crinkles around his pale green eyes indicating the often occurrences of his smiles. School would be almost over for the local high-schoolers, soon people would be filling the bakery. He gave a half-hearted glance at his pile of homework. University homework. Ew, Charlie concluded with a frown. In his mind, homework, school, and mean people are what gives him a headache. On the other hand, singing, baking, and friends relaxed him. The bell rang located at the door rang, alerting him of a new customer. He wiped his flour-covered hand on a nearby towel and walked out of the kitchen. "Hello, welcome to Haven Bakery, how can I help you?" He asked, then winced. He would always forget about it when he was baking. Charlie's voice is special, instead of the deep thrum it's supposed to have, it was high, like a female's. Not that he had anything against the female voice. He just wanted, well, a regular voice. He wouldn't deny the fact that his voice sounded heavenly when he was singing and the look on people's faces when he first spoke to them was hilarious but underneath that, there was always a sense of insecurity, what if people thought my voice was weird? His best friend, Andrew, or Andy as Charlie liked to call him, had always told him (quoting Andy's words, Charlie wouldn't be so outright rude about it), screw what other people think. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he smiled and waited for his customer's response. It surprised him. "I need you to come with me, Mr. Zhou, or should I say... Spring." ... "South, I need you to help me with this." His father's impatient voice asked. South rolled his eyes and made no move to get up from where he was lounging on the bed. "South?" His twin brother's deadpan voice called out. Ugh. He did not want to move from his spot. South didn't care if his father got angry at him, though he never did. North appeared at the door, white hair looking disheveled and silver eyes annoyed. "South, come help us." "What do you want, old man?" He asked, hopping off the bed in exasperation, combing a hand through his shoulder-length black to red hair. North turned around and marched out the door, answering fro his father, "We need to be getting ready for the birthday celebration, South." South stopped his steps as soon as he heard the words, birthday celebration. His face twisted into a snarl, "I've said it once I'm gonna say it again. I'm not going to your damn birthday celebration." North looked vaguely upset. "But it's your birthday too, South." South glared at him, "I don't give a damn." "That's too right, you aren't going anywhere." A voice called gleefully. South whipped around to glare right into the gaze of a little girl. She had vibrant red hair and a crazed look in her wide purple eyes. "Summer, Winter."